READING FOR FEBRUARY 16, 2026: HOSEA 1, MATTHEW 11, PSALM 8 HOSEA 1 Speaking for the Almighty God in Israel or Judah as a prophet was an unbelievable honor, but it wasn’t easy. Isaiah had to go naked for three years. Jeremiah was thrown down a well. Ezekiel had to lay on his side for 430 days while cooking over cow manure. But maybe God asked the most of Hosea: marry a prostitute who would keep being unfaithful.
God did this because he wanted to dramatically demonstrate what Israel had done to Him by continually seeking after other gods. For some of us, the name of his wife, “Gomer," is better known as the name of Jim Nabor’s character on a show called “Gomer Pyle.” Hosea’s story isn’t nearly as humorous, though. God told Hosea to name their first son “Jezreel,” because God was going to punish Israel by bringing an end to the Kingdom of Israel due to the blood it shed at the Valley of Jezreel.
Instead of naming their first daughter Kaitlynn or Emma, God said to name her “Lo-ruhamah,” meaning “not receiving mercy.” God was signaling that after repeatedly showing Israel mercy, He would no longer do so. He would still, however, show mercy to Judah, through whom Jesus would eventually come. As soon as the girl was weaned from her mother, they had another son named “Lo-ammi," which means “not my people.” God then said these mournful words we never want to hear about ourselves: “You are not My people, and I am not your God” (vs.9).
Yet at this moment of greatest dread, God reasserts the covenant promise He gave once to Abraham: “I will greatly multiply your seed as the stars of the heavens and as the sand, which is on the seashore” (Gen. 22:17). He also predicts peace between Judah and Israel under the leadership of one great leader. This great leader is Jesus. Might this be described in Rom. 11:26-27? “All Israel will be saved; just as it is written: ‘The Deliverer will come from Zion, He will remove ungodliness from Jacob. This is My covenant with them, when I take away their sins.”’ Or does this refer to the church as a whole as implied by Rom. 2:29? “He is a Jew who is one inwardly; and circumcision is of the heart, by the Spirit, not by the letter.” God alone knows for sure. His ways are beyond ours (Rom.11:33-36).
MATTHEW 11 After Jesus sent out his disciples to various cities, Jesus went to these same cities to support the effort by preaching and teaching, likely in the local synagogues (13:54). His great advance man, John the Baptist, by now was in prison. John sent some of his disciples to double check to see if Jesus really was the promised Messiah. Jesus responded by telling them to report exactly what they saw, which was exactly what was prophesized in Isa. 35:5 and 61:1.
Jesus used the Bible to respond to John the Baptist here, just as when responding to Satan, the Pharisees, and many others. Roger Nicole, a famous Swiss theologian, commented that about 10% of Jesus’s words in the Gospels are either allusions to or direct quotations from the Bible. If we wish to conform to the life of Jesus, we would be wise to do likewise as appropriate. READINGS FOR FEBRUARY 16, 2026 CONTINUED: MATTHEW 11, PSALM 8 Jesus then offers John the Baptist an astounding tribute, calling him more than a prophet and as great as any man who ever lived up until then. After that upmost complement, he
Immediately says the least in the kingdom is greater than John. How could both statements be true? Peter’s sermon on the day of Pentecost might provide a clue: “Repent and let each of you be baptized in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins; and you shall receive the Holy Spirit (Acts 2:38). The indwelling of the Holy Spirt, available to believers on Pentecost, was not available in this same sense to John the Baptist before Jesus rose from death. It is available to us today when we belong to Jesus through faith (Rom. 8: 9-11).
Another shocking statement by Jesus is His saying that John the Baptist is Elijah. Does Jesus believe in reincarnation, just like the actress Shirley MacLaine and adherents of Eastern mysticism? The angel of the Lord explains this to Zacharias in Luke 1:17. John came in the spirit and power of Elijah and indeed was the fulfillment about Elijah’s coming to precede Jesus (Malachi 4:5-6). So, we should be really humble in our expectations about how God will fulfill his promises to us about the future. Jesus goes on to say that God often does the very opposite of what we expect. Fully believe in His promises. Trust Him with the details.
Jesus provides interesting information about levels of judgment for cities based upon their response to the amount of God’s activity/truth they witnessed/heard. Since we are studying the entire Bible, a really good thing, keep in mind we will be accountable for how we obey all His Word when we stand at the Judgment Seat of Christ (2 Cor. 5:10). Some great news for us, though, is we don’t have to be geniuses. Just believe what the Lord shows us in His Word (Matt.11:25-27). Unlike the many silly rules the Pharisees added, Jesus’s burden is light, and yoke is easy. Walking with Jesus is totally doable for any who desires to follow Him. It’s a joy!
PSALM 8 The Psalmist begins by saying the Lord, who made a stunning universe the size of millions of light-years, is also our personal Lord. He is expansive beyond belief yet closer to us than our breath, if we have confessed Him as our Lord and obey HIs Word. (Of course, we can always do our own thing, if we think we know better.) In God’s wonderful plan, the babbling of little babies stops the efforts of our evil enemy. Jesus took this statement to include the little children praising Him in the temple (Matt 21:16). Let’s not worry about babies crying in the church service. They may be our secret weapon against the devil.
The question about man reminds us that we alone are made in God’s image and have been delegated stewardship responsibility (remember Gen.1-2). We still have it as we struggle with how to manage the earth’s resources. In Hebrews 2 we learn God the Son was also made man. By His death He was crowned with ultimate glory and honor because He tasted death for us.
O LORD, OUR LORD, HOW MAJESTIC IS YOUR NAME!
